Laborie, Saint Lucia: A Caribbean fishing village navigating the turbulent waves of a changing climate

The village of Laborie, Saint Lucia, faces significant economic and social threats due to climate change, specifically through depleted fish catches, sea-level rise, and intense hurricanes. Fisherfolk have adapted by using fish aggregating devices (FADs) and traveling further offshore, though extreme weather continues to destroy equipment and infrastructure. While the Laborie Fishers’ & Consumers Co-operative provides critical distress funding, a lack of long-term insurance for small vessels remains a vulnerability. National efforts, such as the Fisheries Sectoral Adaptation Strategy and Action Plan (2018-2028), aim to enhance sustainability and support the transition toward a resilient blue economy.

• Climate change is causing depleted fish catches, forcing fishers to travel up to 60 nautical miles offshore, which significantly increases fuel costs.
• Fisherfolk have adopted fish aggregating devices (FADs) to maintain viable catches, but these devices are frequently damaged or destroyed by intensifying hurricanes.
• Extreme weather events have caused severe macroeconomic and local damage; Hurricane Tomas in October 2010 resulted in a loss of approximately 43% of Saint Lucia's GDP, while a December 2013 trough contributed to a GDP loss of about 8.3%.
• Rising sea levels have caused significant beach erosion over the last decade, threatening coastal tourism and the accessibility of shore-based storage facilities for fishers.
• The Laborie Fishers’ & Consumers Co-operative provides essential recovery funding through a distress fund, but the sector remains vulnerable because small vessels lack insurance coverage beyond their loan repayment periods.

APA

Henry, J. (2023). Laborie, Saint Lucia: A Caribbean fishing village navigating the turbulent waves of a changing climate. Global Resilience Partnership. https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/laborie-saint-lucia-a-caribbean-fishing-village-navigating-the-turbulent-waves-of-a-changing-climate/

Chicago

Henry, Jevanic. Laborie, Saint Lucia: A Caribbean fishing village navigating the turbulent waves of a changing climate. Global Resilience Partnership, 2023. https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/laborie-saint-lucia-a-caribbean-fishing-village-navigating-the-turbulent-waves-of-a-changing-climate/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Henry |first1=Jevanic |title=Laborie, Saint Lucia: A Caribbean fishing village navigating the turbulent waves of a changing climate |publisher=Global Resilience Partnership |date=25 July 2023 |url=https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/laborie-saint-lucia-a-caribbean-fishing-village-navigating-the-turbulent-waves-of-a-changing-climate/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{henry2023laborie, author = {Henry, Jevanic}, title = {{Laborie, Saint Lucia: A Caribbean fishing village navigating the turbulent waves of a changing climate}}, institution = {Global Resilience Partnership}, year = {2023}, month = jul, url = {https://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/laborie-saint-lucia-a-caribbean-fishing-village-navigating-the-turbulent-waves-of-a-changing-climate/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }